Dutch Model 30 Armchair by Gijs Van Der Sluis for T Spectrum, 1950s

Not a lot of information is available on the Dutch industrial designer Gijs van der Sluis. Particularly active in the 1950s and ‘60s, the self-taught, modernist designer is known for his contemporary and functional designs which included chairs , tables , sofas , and daybeds .

In 1946, van der Sluis, along with his brother Leo, established the steel furniture manufacturer, Van der Sluis Stalen Meubelen, in Culemborg. Van der Sluis had some intermediate technical training, but was mostly self-taught in the area of architecture and design. Due to van der Sluis’s design genius, the company grew exponentially from 1950 until 1990.

Besides designing for his own company, van der Sluis also designed furniture for Gispen and 't Spectrum. Arguably his most well-known design, the 540 Sofa for Gipsen (1961) boasts simple and pure lines, with the added functionality of easily transforming into a bed. His lounge chairs—such as the Model 30 and Model 36 (both 1960s)—often featured plush seating paired with chromed-metal frames and floating wooden armrests. Often confused with Martin Visser’s SZ 63 Lounge Chair (1960s), the Model 30 Lounge Chair showcases van der Sluis’ proclivity for clean lines and minimalist  tendencies. 

Although Van der Sluis Stalen Meubelen (known today as Vandersluis) is still in existence, the vintage furniture designed by van der Sluis—especially his sofa beds and lounge chairs—is favored on the vintage market today. 

* Images courtesy of Vandersluis

Dutch furniture company ‘t Spectrum was founded as a subsidiary of De Ploeg Textiles in 1941 in Bergeijk, the Netherlands. During World War II, the market for upholstery and fabrics shrunk; so De Ploeg director Piet Blijenburg (1896-1967)—a real go-getter—decided to tap into the more general, more durable market for domestic “industrial arts.” After the war, Blijenburg aligned ‘t Spectrum with the “Goed Wonen” (Good Living) movement in the Netherlands, which, much like the “Good Design” movement in the US, emphasized design work that embodied a healthy, modern lifestyle at affordable prices. The early objects produced by ‘t Spectrum—from tableware and lighting, to stools, magazine racks, and children’s furniture—quickly earned a reputation in the Netherlands for frugality, utility, and durability.

In 1954, engineer-designer Martin Visser (1922-2009) became ‘t Spectrum’s Head of Design—in charge of developing the collections and overseeing production—and piloted the company’s “form follows function” ethos into the booming postwar era. As the wartime ban on metal consumption lifted, Visser designed a number of popular furniture pieces—chairs, tables, and more—in tubular steel, including his iconic BR 02.7 Sofa Bed (1955-58). Visser also commissioned outside creatives to contribute to ‘t Spectrum’s line, including graphic artist Constant Nieuwenhuys, designers Benno Premsela and Kho Liang Ie, and, most famously, architect Gerrit Rietveld. Although ‘t Spectrum’s aesthetic through the end of the 1960s was quite industrial, Visser, in fact, held a preference for handmade furniture; as a result, ‘t Spectrum's seating and storage products were always finely crafted and often too costly for the mass market.

In the early ‘70s, with cheaper, foreign products bringing stiff competition, ‘t Spectrum’s directors decided to liquidate the company. Some employees, however, wanted to continue; and so they opened a smaller manufacturing outfit under the name Arspect, selling a small number of ‘t Spectrum pieces alongside new designers. Unable to weather financial problems in the 1980s, Arspect also closed; but luckily another former ‘t Spectrum employee bought the original, ‘60s-era design licenses and set up Spectrum, as it is known today, in Eindhoven. This latest incarnation still offers high-quality pieces by Visser and Rietveld, among others.